


Sick Day

by natashasbanner



Series: 30 Days of Bruce/Natasha Fluff [9]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-09
Updated: 2017-12-09
Packaged: 2019-02-12 11:11:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,360
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12957957
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/natashasbanner/pseuds/natashasbanner
Summary: Natasha catches the flu from Clint's kids, but Bruce is there to take care of her no matter how difficult a patient she is.





	Sick Day

Natasha never got sick. Her immune system was a force to be reckoned with, but one weekend with the Barton kids and she felt like complete and utter shit. She and Bruce had offered to watch the kids over the weekend while Clint and Laura took a much needed break. Nathaniel had had a stomach ache all day Sunday and Natasha hadn’t thought anything of until she was hit by the worst wave of nausea she’d ever experienced Tuesday morning. 

As fast as her feet could carry her, she sprinted to the bathroom and barely made it to the toilet in time. 

She heard Bruce stumble in behind her and closed her eyes as another wave hit her. 

“Are you okay?” he asked, his voice still rough from sleep. She doubted he was fully awake yet, but it was clear that his concern for her outweighed his desire to stay in bed. 

Natasha might’ve been touched if she weren’t kneeling in front of the toilet. She took a few steadying breaths, willing her stomach to settle long enough for her to speak. 

“I think I caught what Nate had,” she grumbled out, her stomach flipping uncomfortably with the slightest movement. 

Bruce kneeled beside her and put his hand on her forehead, his features pinched in concentration. 

“It feels like you’ve got a fever,” he concluded. 

Natasha groaned and turned her head back toward the toilet. 

“I’m supposed to help Sam with the new recruits today.” 

Bruce chuckled softly and rubbed her back soothingly. “I don’t think you’re going anywhere today, darling. Do you want to go back and lie down?” 

“In a minute,” she grunted.

They sat on the bathroom floor for a few minutes, until Natasha felt like she could move without vomiting again. Bruce helped her stand and walked her back into their bedroom. She dropped gracelessly onto the mattress and let him cover her up. She curled in on herself and grimaced up at Bruce. 

“Thanks, Bruce.” 

Bruce brushed ran his fingers lightly through her sweaty hair. “I’ll be right back.” 

She watched him hurry out of the room before closing her eyes. She pulled the blankets tighter around her to ward off the chill that had begun to set in. 

Bruce came back in with a glass of water in one hand and a plate of toast in the other. He set the plate and glass on her night stand and pulled a bottle of pills out of his pocket. 

“For the vomiting,” he explained and shook a couple out of the bottle. 

Natasha sat up enough to grab the glass of water and accept the pills from Bruce. She swallowed them in one gulp and moved to set the glass back down, but he held out a hand to stop her. 

“Drink the rest, you need to stay hydrated.” He nodded at the glass. “And the toast will help settle your stomach.” 

She took a sip and smirked over the rim of the glass. “You’re really living up to the title, aren’t you, Doc?” 

Bruce laughed and shook his head. “I’m not that kind of doctor,” he said. 

“Shouldn’t you be getting ready for work?” she asked, picking at the toast. Her stomach bubbled uncomfortably at the thought of eating anything, but forced herself to eat the whole thing. 

“I think I’ll stay home today,” he said with a shrug. He sat on the edge of the bed and felt her forehead again. 

Natasha rolled her eyes playfully and nudged him with her foot. “Don’t stay home on my account. I don’t plan on moving any time soon.” 

Bruce shrugged. “I already sent the email. My TAs can handle one day without me.” 

“Skipping work to hang out with your girlfriend? Should I be flattered?” she joked, sinking back down into the pillows. 

“Hardly,” he said and scoffed. “Someone has to make sure you don’t get dehydrated.” 

She chuckled and closed her eyes. “I can take care of myself just fine, thank you.”

She heard Bruce laugh softly and felt his fingers in her hair one more time before he stood up. 

“Call me if you need me. I’ll just be in the living room,” he said. 

Natasha hummed softly, already drifting off to sleep. She just hoped she felt a little better when she woke up. 

* * *

When Natasha woke up again she didn’t feel nauseous anymore, a fact she was grateful for, but her entire body ached. Rolling over onto her side took all of her effort and she wanted nothing more than to fall back asleep for the rest of the day. But her throat hurt and her water glass was missing from the night stand.

She let out a long breath and pushed herself off the mattress, taking the comforter with her because she was still freezing. Bruce was in the living room like he’d promised when she shuffled past on her way to the kitchen. 

He jumped off the couch when he saw her and followed her into the kitchen. Natasha would have laughed if she had the energy. 

“I told you to call if you needed anything,” he told her, shaking his head. He hovered by her side while she reached into the cupboard for a glass and went to the fridge for the filter pitcher of water. 

“I’m just getting some water,” she pointed out, holding up her filled glass as she leaned against the counter. 

“How do you feel?” he asked, looking her over with concern. 

“Like shit,” Natasha answered, taking a slow sip of water. “But I haven’t vomited again, so that’s a plus.” 

Bruce tried to hide his smirk at that, but Natasha was on to him. He was amused no matter how much he was trying to appear serious. 

“Do you want to try and eat something?” he asked. 

“Yeah, since someone stole my toast,” she said, raising an eyebrow at him. 

He groaned and rolled his eyes. “I didn’t know how long you were going to be asleep for. Would you like me to make some more?” 

Natasha grinned and nodded. “Yes, please.” 

Bruce just shook his head and turned around to get start some more toast for her. 

As much as she was enjoying pushing Bruce’s buttons, the effort of keeping herself upright was starting to become too much. 

“I’ll be on the couch,” she told him. 

Slowly, she shuffled out to the living room and lowered herself onto the couch. A couple minutes later Bruce sat down beside her with a new plate of toast and set it in her lap. 

“Thank you.” She picked up one of the pieces and nibbled on it tentatively. 

She watched Bruce pick his tablet up from the coffee table and leaned her head against his shoulder. 

“What are you doing?” she asked, catching a glimpse of his university email. 

“Grading,” he answered with a shrug, “and responding to emails. I figured I should get something since I’m not there.” 

“You didn’t have to stay with me,” she reminded him, finishing the first piece of toast and grabbing the second. “I would have been fine on my own.” 

“Says the woman that walked around with a stab wound for days without telling anyone.” 

“There were more important things to deal with at the time,” she pointed out. They were trying to save the world. 

Bruce sighed and tapped around on his tablet before he spoke again. 

“You don’t have the best track record is all I was saying,” he said, his voice thick. 

Natasha turned her head up and pressed her forehead into his jaw. He moved to lightly kiss her forehead and she let out a sigh. 

“I appreciate it,” she told him softly. 

She really meant it. Having him there, taking care of her, was something she would have scoffed at in the past. The only person she’d needed was herself and everyone else could not be trusted. But there she was, completely and utterly in love with this man who would skip a day of work just to make sure she was okay even though they both knew it was just the flu. 


End file.
